Oklahoma woman fraudulently receives over $30,000 in disaster relief

Oklahoma woman fraudulently receives over $30,000 in disaster relief

MANNFORD, Okla. – A Mannford woman was found guilty of fraudulently receiving over $30,000 in disaster relief.

According to United States Attorney Danny Williams Sr., a Mannford woman pleaded guilty in federal court to fraudulently obtaining FEMA disaster assistance made available to victims of Mannford wildfires.

Kerry Rowell, 41, pleaded guilty to a charge that she made false statements to a federal agency.

Rowell fraudulently received $31,400 in FEMA disaster assistance benefits after she made false statements and provided false documents to support her application for FEMA disaster assistance.

She claimed her primary residence was destroyed, when she did not reside at that residence.

The Department of Justice says the house was actually owned by her mother and was uninhabited, dilapidated, and had no utility service.

The personal property she listed on the FEMA application was not in the abandoned house when it was destroyed by the fire.

Rowell now faces the maximum penalty of five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.